This week, I've decided to ditch the diversity theme and talk about a topic on which everyone seems to have a different view: the stimulus package.
Quite frankly, I do not have a strong enough economic background to discuss the $787 billion that will be allocated to everything from high-speed rail development to removing lead paint from public housing. I think at this point everyone has formulated an opinion about the entire ordeal, and I would find it pointless to try to argue for either side. However, there is a particular $5 billion that has me very concerned.
This $5 billion has been named the Race to the Top Fund and it is part of the $100 billion that has been granted to education as part of the stimulus package. This $5 billion will be presided over by Arne Duncan, the secretary of education. This money is meant as an incentive to schools, and will be distributed by Mr. Duncan at his discretion.
Good idea? Depends on your idea of performance.
The American public school system is currently structured under the conditions of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), signed into law by the Bush administration in 2002. NCLB itself is hotly debated, but many teachers, including myself, would argue against it.
NCLB bases performance of students only on standardized tests. Schools must show adequate yearly progress (AYP), or else they are punished with sanctions that can eventually result in the school being reopened as a charter school. The idealistic goal is to have 100 percent of students meeting state standards by the 2013-2014 school year. This 100 percent includes non-native English speakers and most children with learning exceptionalities, punishing schools that have a high number of either.
The AYP does not even measure the progress of the same group of students. For example, the test scores of eighth graders from this year will be compared with what the incoming eighth graders score next year. Different kids with different individual diversities, but it doesn't matter. A school will be punished if the grades do not increase. Imagine the pressure put on those students, teachers and administrators.
Finally, NCLB narrows curriculum. NCLB focuses on math, science and English skills. This means a decrease of time spent on foreign languages, the arts and social studies. For those who argue that those are fluff subjects, do not forget that economics, a topic of national concern, is categorized under social studies. Basically, students are being deprived of a well-rounded education.
As a future educator, I am thrilled that Barack Obama has decided to shower education with billions of dollars. However, if this money is not spent where it is needed, it has the potential to actually make things worse. This $5 billion race implies that all students begin at the same starting line, while in reality many issues such as learning differences and socioeconomic status push many students behind. The components of the finish line at the top are ambiguous, but if they imitate the goals of No Child Left Behind
only schools that score well on standardized tests will be rewarded. There will be no reward for classrooms that promote creative thinking, problem solving, or anything other than regurgitation. Students will leave school without the ability to think for themselves. Until No Child Left Behind is abolished and a new way for evaluating what constitutes a successful school is created, the $5 billion Race to the Top Fund will be money well-wasted.
Christina Stanek is a senior studying Spanish and Spanish education. Send her an e-mail at cs348305@ohiou.edu. 4
Opinion
Christina Stanek
